This invention relates to catamenial tampons and the like.
The menstrual discharge (comprising endometrial cells, secretions and blood), is intermittent and takes place over hours and days. The blood and other matter exude following the line of gravity. Sometimes the flow is light, sometimes heavy. The purpose of a tampon is not necessarily to plug up this discharge, but rather it is to prevent leakage of this discharge by absorption of the liquid into the body of the removable tampon. Because blood and other matter tend to coagulate, clog and mat up the fibers in present tampons, damming can occur that prevents access of the fluid into the tampon, encouraging vertical by-pass leakage before the normal useful life of the tampon has been used. Such early leaking may occur down the sides or string and especially next to a damming area. Bypass leakage can also occur due to slow response of the tampon to expand upon first contact with moisture after insertion of the tampon.
Improved tampon constructions are desirable for decreasing the risk of early leakage, for increasing the efficiency of use of tampon fibers, and for decreasing the cost of production and increasing the facility with which tampons are made.